Nothing Up My Sleeve Read online

  Loop didn’t like to recite prayers, so he just talked to O.G. That’s what he called the little statue. “O.G.” was how rappers abbreviated “original gangster,” but around here, it meant “original Guadalupe.” He hadn’t told his grandma about the nickname, because she’d make him go to confession if she knew.

  Loop lit a candle and then plopped on the bed to study. He was about to fall asleep when someone knocked on the door.

  He used his horror-film voice, saying, “You may enter if you dare.” Rubén, his “dad,” stepped in.

  Rubén said, “I’m going to the car wash. Want to come?”

  “Can’t. I’m grounded.”

  “How about watching the game later?”

  By “game,” he meant basketball. It was the NBA playoffs. Loop loved watching sports with Rubén, but instead he said, “I’ll catch the scores tomorrow.” He lifted Ancient Civilizations of the World and pretended to read.

  Rubén got the hint. “All right, then.”

  As soon as he left, Loop threw his book. It landed facedown on the floor, its pages getting wrinkled. He couldn’t help being angry with his “dad,” not after the big lie his family had told him.

  All these years, Loop had been too dumb to realize that he and Rubén didn’t look alike. Rubén had curly hair; Loop’s was straight. Rubén had a gigantic nose; Loop’s was a normal size. Rubén had a runner’s body; Loop had a wrestler’s. He had never thought about these differences until he learned that Rubén wasn’t actually his dad, something he had never imagined, because Rubén was in Loop’s baby pictures and was dating his mom for years before she got pregnant. They even had pictures from the school dances they went to. That’s how long they’d known each other.

  Loop had learned the truth right before spring break. He was at his grandma’s when he got in a fight after his cousin called him “Sancho’s son.” “Sancho” was what Tejanos called “the other man.” That cousin was seriously disrespecting Loop’s mom, so Loop tried to beat him up to teach him a lesson. He punched his cousin, and his cousin punched back. They got in a clench, each of them trying to take down the other. The uncles had to pull them apart. And it was a good thing, too, because Loop was about to break out some serious Muay Thai. He’d have won that fight. No way was his cousin tougher than him. As their uncles pulled them apart, Loop kept calling his cousin a liar, and his cousin kept saying, “I’m telling the truth. Just ask your parents.” So Loop did. As soon as he got home, he said, “Am I Sancho’s son?” His mom started crying, and Rubén told him to go to his room.

  About an hour later, they came in and explained the whole thing. Back when they were dating, they had a big fight and broke up for a while. Then Loop’s mom met this loser and got pregnant. Then she begged Rubén to take her back, and he did. He even proposed so they could be married when Loop was born. Rubén promised to act like a real father, and he did… except for telling this big lie all these years.

  Loop hated to think about it, so he put in his earbuds and turned up the volume. He liked listening to industrial sounds—not music, just sounds like trains, clocks, sirens, revving engines, falling coins, or banging pipes. He had downloaded tracks of factory noise, too. It made him feel like he was in a machine. Sometimes he wished he were a machine because machines got made on purpose and for a purpose. They weren’t mistakes, the way he was.

  sleight—

  the manipulation of objects (often cards) to create a magical effect

  SINCE SPRING BREAK, LOOP had been counting the weeks, then days, till school ended. Now he was totally free! Okay, maybe he was on probation at home, but why spoil the illusion of complete freedom?

  After perfecting the “dozen spectacular tricks for beginners,” the boys had become—drumroll, please—magicians! Not like Harry Potter or Merlin, but real-world magicians using sleights of hand. Magic was all they talked about now, especially today as they made their way to Conjuring Cats, where they hoped, finally, to get a key to the Vault.

  “We’re going to blow their minds,” Loop said.

  Then Dominic started talking in his know-it-all voice. “The goal of performing a trick is to make the ordinary seem extraordinary; the impossible, possible; the—”

  Z punched his shoulder. “Magic’s for fooling people and making them laugh.”

  “No,” Loop said. “It’s for freaking them out.” He lifted his shirt to show black stitches. They weren’t real stitches; he’d drawn them with his mom’s eyeliner pencil. In his opinion, they looked cool. That’s why he drew a row of stitches somewhere on his body every day.

  “I wonder what’s in there,” Z said about the Vault.

  Loop wondered, too. “I bet there are straitjackets, chains, and guillotines. I bet there’s an initiation ceremony. They tie you up, stick you in a box, and lock it from the outside. Then they wait to see if you can get out. I bet it’s airtight, so you have to hurry, before you suffocate to death.”

  “I’m surprised you don’t think there’s a wormhole in there,” Z said.

  “That’d be cool,” Loop replied. “Think about it. You step through a portal to another planet that’s a lot like our planet, except there’s magic and orange people. But they’re supernice. They like to trade their magic for things from our world.”

  “Like what?” Z asked.

  “I don’t know exactly. Maybe jelly beans or skateboards.” The boys cracked up. Even Loop laughed at himself.

  “No,” said Dominic when they settled down. “I’m sure there’s a sage in there.”

  “What’s that?” Z asked.

  “A wise man. There’s always a wise man. He’s usually old and decrepit, but he knows lots of stuff.”

  “What does ‘decrepit’ mean?”

  “Old and hunched over and weak. Do I have to define everything?”

  Z ignored the sarcastic comment. “Why would I want to see a half-dead guy like that?” he asked.

  “Because he’s wise. He’s got answers,” Dominic replied.

  “I want to see a half-dead guy,” Loop said. “I don’t care if he’s wise or dumb.”

  They walked in silence for a while, considering it. Then they arrived at Conjuring Cats.

  “Hello, boys,” Mrs. Garza said as they entered her shop. “Today’s the big day. Are you ready?”

  Loop was ready. He was going to perform the Mafia Manicure. It had taken only five minutes to learn. He hadn’t even needed to read the instructions. That’s how easy it was. His confidence level was at 100 percent. He was totally going to ace this magic test!

  heckler—

  an audience member who harasses the performer

  WHEN MRS. GARZA ASKED if they were ready, Dominic’s stomach got twisted up. A few minutes ago, he was all pumped about performing, but now he just felt deflated. He couldn’t explain it, since he’d practiced his trick a zillion times.

  “Maybe you can go over your routines while I get the stage ready,” Mrs. Garza said, and that made him even more nervous. Then Mrs. Garza turned to Ariel, who was writing in a little notebook. “Gather the cats,” she told her.

  After Ariel finished scribbling in the notebook, she placed Spades, the black cat, and Diamonds, the white one, on the benches by the stage. They stretched out and closed their eyes for a nap. Then Ariel went into the Vault, and Dominic wondered if she was going to be in the audience, too. He had mixed feelings about that, because he wanted to show off his skills, but since she was the reigning champion, he didn’t want to embarrass himself.

  “Okay,” Dominic whispered to his friends, “any questions about how to do the tricks?”

  “It’s all under control,” Z said.

  “Because I can explain things if I need to,” Dominic went on.

  “I got it, okay?” Z said. Dominic was just trying to help, so he wasn’t sure why Z was getting so defensive.

  “My trick’s a piece of cake,” Loop added, “or a piece of flesh.” The boys giggled.

  At that moment, a teenage couple ste
pped into the store. “Welcome to Conjuring Cats!” Mrs. Garza said, waving them over. “Want to see a magic show?”

  They glanced at each other and shrugged. “Why not?” they said as they headed to the benches.

  Mrs. Garza went to the purple curtain, poked her head through, and called Ariel. Nothing. So Mrs. Garza slipped into the Vault, and a moment later, she came out, Ariel following with her arms crossed and her whole face a giant scowl. She grabbed Diamonds to take his spot. He hardly noticed—all he did was get comfy on her lap.

  With the audience seated and paying attention, Dominic, Loop, and Z went to the stage, but then they just stood there, not sure how to begin.

  “One at a time,” Mrs. Garza said. “Who’s going first?”

  Z immediately raised his hand. “I—”

  “Me!” Dominic rushed to say. He didn’t mean to push his friend aside, but he was going to be sick if he didn’t get this over with.

  “Okay, then,” Mrs. Garza said, and to Loop and Z, “You two take a seat.”

  So now Dominic was alone on the stage. He reached into his pocket and took out a prop called a Hot Rod. It was a little stick with different colored gems. “Look at this,” he said to the audience. “Both sides of the stick have the same color gems.” He flipped the stick to show both sides, and sure enough, each side had the same colors. “Purple, white, blue, red, green, and yellow,” he pointed out. “Now, what’s your favorite color?” he asked Ariel.

  She looked at Diamonds on her lap. “White, I guess.”

  Dominic didn’t seem satisfied, so he asked the teenage boy what his favorite color was. “Black, definitely black,” he said.

  “But I don’t have a black gem,” Dominic said.

  “You didn’t say it had to be a color from the stick.”

  Dominic frowned. “Hmmm,” he mumbled.

  “Can you get on with it?” Ariel complained. “This is taking way too long.”

  “Why don’t you use your psychic abilities?” Z suggested, and Dominic perked up, as if remembering something.

  “You,” he said, pointing to the teenage girl. “I’m sensing you like the color red.”

  She shrugged. “It’s okay. I mean, my favorite color is really blue.”

  “No, it’s red,” Dominic said.

  “I think I know what my favorite color is.”

  Dominic ignored her. “Let me prove it to you. Why don’t you give me a number between one and six?”

  She thought a moment. “Three.”

  “Good. Three. Now watch this.” He held up the stick and pointed at the gems as he counted. “One, two, three,” he said, his finger landing on blue.

  Ariel shook her head as if she was watching the lamest trick in the world.

  “I told you,” the girl said. “I like blue.”

  “Wait a minute.” Dominic scratched his head. “I was supposed to count from the bottom up.” He repeated himself, this time starting with the gems at the bottom of the stick and landing on the red. “Abracadabra,” he said, waving his hand over the stick. “I will now change all the gems to red.” He flipped the stick again, and the gems turned red. In fact, they were now red on both sides!

  “Cool,” the girl said, “but my favorite color is still blue. Can you make them turn blue?”

  Dominic stuttered. “Um, well, um, it only works with red.”

  He glanced at his friends for help, so they started clapping, Mrs. Garza joining in. After a moment, the teenage couple clapped, too, and the noise startled the cats. Diamonds meowed, and Spades opened his eyes but quickly shut them again.

  “Are you kidding?” Ariel said to the whole audience. “He totally messed up.”

  “It’s true,” Mrs. Garza said to Dominic. “You had a little trouble remembering whether to count from the top or from the bottom, but your paddle move was perfectly executed. You did an excellent job of changing all the multicolored gems to red. I am more than happy to grant you a key to the Vault.”

  Dominic breathed a sigh of relief. He could feel the knot in his stomach starting to untie itself.

  “Who’s next?” Mrs. Garza asked.

  Loop stood, even though Z’s hand shot up again. “I guess I am,” Loop said. He grabbed a little table, placed it in the center of the stage, and put a wooden block on it. The block had two holes and looked like a miniature guillotine. Once he finished setting up, Loop faced the audience. “Before I begin, I want to say that for my trick, viewer discretion is advised.” He glanced at the teenagers, but they didn’t budge. “Okay, then. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He paused a moment. “For this, I need a volunteer.” Z’s hand went up yet again. “I need a brave volunteer,” Loop said, making everyone laugh. He pointed to Ariel. “How about you?”

  “No,” she said. “I already know what you’re going to do.”

  He smiled. “Admit it. It scares you to death, doesn’t it?”

  “Bores me to death would be more accurate.”

  “Ariel,” her mother warned.

  “Mom, he’s got the prop for the Mafia Manicure. You know I’ve seen this a million times.”

  Dominic had seen it a million times, too, and it still amazed him.

  “That’s right!” Loop interrupted. “And when the Mafia gives you a manicure, they don’t cut your nails—they cut off your whole finger.”

  “Sounds cool!” the teenage boy said. “I’d like to see you try to chop off my finger.”

  “Then step right up,” Loop said.

  The boy walked to the stage. First Loop showed everyone the wooden block. It had two parts, the block with a hole for the finger and a “blade” that you could slide in and out. He told the boy to put his finger through one of the holes, and then he gently pressed down the sliding blade.

  “Do you feel pressure on your finger?” Loop asked.

  “Yeah, dude, I do.”

  Then—BAM!—Loop punched the blade all the way through. There was a scream, not from the boy, who was laughing, but from the girl.

  “Check it out,” the boy said. “I can still wiggle my finger.” He wiggled his finger.

  “Now,” Loop said, “very slowly take your finger out of the guillotine.”

  The teenager did as he was asked. His finger was fine. “Oh, man,” he said. “You sliced and reattached it all in the same moment.”

  Loop nodded, took a bow, and the audience clapped. Everyone except Ariel.

  “That’s it?” she said. “Your whole routine was, like, ten seconds.”

  “More important than the length of your performance,” Mrs. Garza said to Loop, “was your composure. You had a heckler in the audience”—she glanced at Ariel—“but you managed to keep control and move on. That said, I have to agree that your trick could use a little more development. Next time, consider a series of tricks, or spend more time building the suspense. There has to be a bigger payoff for the audience.”

  Even though she was speaking to Loop, Dominic nodded as he made a mental note—audience control, suspense, and payoff. These were definitely important concepts. He was quickly realizing that the magic instructions told you what to do but not how to do it. For example, where were you supposed to look? How were you supposed to stand? And what were you supposed to say? He didn’t have to worry about this when he practiced alone, but in a room full of people, audience control, suspense, and payoff were 90 percent of the performance.

  “Yeah,” Loop said. “I guess I could have drawn it out a little longer.”

  Mrs. Garza smiled. “Excellent! And now, I’m pleased to announce that you have earned a key to the Vault.”

  Loop punched the air. “Yes!”

  “Okay, one more to go,” Mrs. Garza said, glancing at Z.

  proof—

  a step in a trick that serves to demonstrate that magic has truly occurred

  OF COURSE THERE’S ONLY one person left, Z thought, after I was rudely interrupted by both of my friends. He couldn’t believe how they pushed him aside when they knew he wanted to
go first. It was bad enough being last with his family. Did he have to be last with his friends, too?

  “Are you ready?” Mrs. Garza asked.

  Z nodded and walked to the stage. He took a deep breath, wiped his hands on his jeans as if to dry them, took another deep breath, stretched his neck with head rolls in clockwise and then counterclockwise circles, and after another deep breath, he shook out his hands and…

  “Will you hurry up?” Ariel said, impatient. “We don’t have all day.”

  Z continued to shake his hands, and then he cleared his throat.

  “Anybody have a dollar?” he asked. Nobody moved. “It’s for my trick. I need a dollar.” He looked at his friends, his eyes begging for help. “I forgot to ask for my allowance before I came.”

  “OMG!” Ariel exclaimed. “This is so ridiculous. Can I go now?”

  Mrs. Garza said, “Stay right there.”

  Loop sighed and reached into his pocket. “All I have is a five.”

  “Thanks,” Z whispered. “I can’t believe I forgot to bring money.”

  Z took a pen that was tucked behind his ear. “This is a pen,” he said. “And this is a five-dollar bill.” He showed everyone the pen and the bill. “Mrs. Garza, just to prove that there’s no monkey business, will you write your name on the bill?”

  She took the pen, but when she tried to sign her name, it didn’t work.

  “Wait a minute,” Z said, taking the pen back. He glanced at Dominic, who used hand gestures to explain what had gone wrong. Z nodded and said, “Just a sec.” He turned his back to the audience and fiddled with the pen. Then he gave it back to Mrs. Garza. “See if you can write your name now.” She did, and after she returned the pen and bill, Z displayed her signature to everyone, including Diamonds and Spades, who couldn’t read it because they had their eyes closed and because they were cats.

  “Do you see her signature?” he asked. Everyone nodded. “Do you also see the shifty eyes of George Washington?” This time, they shook their heads. Z glanced at the bill. “I mean, do you see the shifty eyes of Abraham Lincoln?”